There's a saying among software developers: the last 10% of the product takes the last 90% of the effort. I think the same rule applies to making anything, which might explain some of the pitfalls crafters run into when they're working on projects. Consider second sock/sleeve syndrome, or people who get really bogged down and discouraged by the finishing step. It can be frustrating to know there is so much done, and yet so much more to do before completion.
That's where I am with the ogee motif blanket. I've been applying the fourth and final motif round for two weeks now, darning in the ends as I finish each colour set. The final round is just single crochet and takes hardly any time to do. Darning in the ends (8 per motif) isn't so bad either, because there are easy, logical places to bury all the ends, and some of the ends can be darned in two at a time.
But. There are 162 motifs in total: 120 whole motifs, 24 vertical half-motifs, 12 horizontal half-motifs. The half-motifs have the same number of ends as the whole ones, so that's 162x8 ends to do: 1,296.
Sometimes it's better not to figure these things out!
I was sick last weekend, which means all my estimates for finishing are blown out again. I do want to finish soon, though, because spring is already trying to come to Toronto, and I don't want to be working on a bedspread-sized blanket when the weather is warm.
The assembly stage is coming soon soon soon, and it will have its own challenges. The bigger the piece gets, the less portable it will be. Probably I'll get around this by assembling in strips three motifs across, then connect the strips to form the full blanket.
The border will have to be applied in rounds. I don't think there's any better way to do that.
Onwards.